Although late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) is a widely used technique in daily clinical practice, the optimal contrast dose and time of acquisition at 3.0 T is unknown. Aim of our study was to compare different contrast doses and acquisition times for LGE imaging at 3.0 T.

34 patients with chronic myocardial infarction were randomized to 0.1 (n = 12), 0.15 (n = 11) and 0.2 (n = 11) mmol/Kg of gadolinium contrast (gadobenate dimeglumine - MultiHance®). T1-weighted inversion recovery gradient echo sequences were performed at 5, 10, 15 and 20 minutes post-administration of contrast in all groups, with an individually adapted trigger delay at every single time point. Signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the scar, contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) of the scar in comparison to healthy myocardium and the percentage of enhanced area volume relative to the global myocardium were quantified. A 4-point score was used to assess image quality in all studies.

In LGE imaging at 3.0T low doses of gadolinium and early acquisitions perform equally well in terms of SNR and CNR, although a trend towards poorer image quality with early acquisitions is noted. When using lower contrast doses, early acquisition is associated with lower enhanced area volumes. As a consequence, late acquisition is preferable. Studies with sufficient diagnostic quality could be obtained using shorter protocols with low contrast doses.

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